Tia
Every time my eyes opened, it was the same thing over and over again. The hitting, the raping, and the repeating of the same words—there wasn't a part of my body that he didn't hit, and I was ready to give in. I couldn't take it anymore. I just gave up. No one would ever find me. I knew Dominic would go back to my apartment looking for me, and if this isn't Alyssa, then I have no idea who it is, and I'll probably die here. All I could think about was Dominic and my mother. All I could think about was Dominic. I wanted to see Dominic one last time.
I didn't know how long I was there or how long it'd been; it felt like forever, and I couldn't hold on anymore, so I gave up. I was somewhere between conscious and unconscious. I could hear the footsteps, and I knew it would happen all over again. The last thing I remember hearing was,
"I'm done with you for now. I hope you've learned your lesson; if not, I'll see you again. I'll be watching if I see a single police officer. I'll grab that mother of yours, and I'll do the same to her too.”
When I opened my eyes and saw Dominic, all I could do was hold onto him and cry. I didn't care if it was a dream or if it was real; I just wanted him.
Dominic
The way she held onto me and cried broke my heart.
"Tia, it's okay. I'm here. We're all here. You're safe now; your mom's here; please don't cry anymore; I'm sorry.”.
I calmed her down enough so she could talk to her mother. The doctor had already warned us not to ask questions until she was better. My father motioned me over towards him.
“Dominican, we need to get the police involved, Bennett, and I will handle it quietly. I've called for security for the house; reassure her that her mother will be safe.”.
“Okay, but she's going to talk to them when she's ready; she'll do that on her own; I'm not going to make her relive that nightmare.”.
Just then, a man walked in and came to us.
“Mr. Chase, My name is Detective Ryan. I came across your girlfriend's case, and I asked to take it on.”.
"WWhy ?”. He looked at us.
“Two other cases match; it's the same Mo. The two other victims didn't make it; they died in surgery. I understand it's a traumatic experience, and you probably don't want her to relieve that, so I'll leave that to you. I'm sure you're the only one she'll talk to, so I'll give you the questions, and you can record her answers.”.
“Fine”. He handed me a small recorder and a piece of paper with the questions. I put them in my pocket. I walked back over to her and saw that she was tired, so I told them to go home. She needed to rest. They could visit tomorrow. After they left, it was just me and her. Bennett would bring back some of my stuff. I wasn't leaving her side ever again.
She was quiet. I just held her hand.
"I'm sorry, Tia. I should have been there, but I wasn't.”. She started crying.
I got up and sat next to her, wiping her tears away.
“Please don't cry anymore.”. She tried to sit up, but she couldn't,so I helped her up.
“Girls like me shouldn't take things that belong to others.”. What was she talking about?
"Tia, what do you mean?”.
I pressed the recorder on, and she was doing this on her own.
“That's what he said to me. I needed to be taught a lesson: girls like me shouldn't take things that belong to others. I was about to take a shower when I heard something. I thought you had come back. The front door was open. I was about to close the door when the cloth with chloroform came up to my nose. I pulled away, but I'd already smelled it. I picked up the vase, but I think he cut me, and I dropped it. I tried going back to the bathroom but fell over. When I turned around, he was standing behind me with a knife. He was like a shadow. When I woke up, I didn't know where I was or what time it was. It was completely dark, pitch black, and deadly quiet—not even the sound of crickets or anything. The only thing I could hear were his footsteps and his voice. He hit me, Dominic, nonstop while repeating those words. He raped me. He said he's watching; if I told the police, he would kidnap my mom and do the same thing to her. I'm scared, Dominic.”.
She started crying; I just held her to me and let her cry.
“What do I have to do to make you better? Tell me, love, I'll do whatever you want.”.
“Take me away from here." Dominic, please. He said he would see me soon. He hoped I learned my lesson. If I didn't, he would see me soon. Take me away from here, please.”.
“Okay, I'll take you away, love, I promise. Close your eyes and get some rest.”.
I waited until she was asleep, then texted my brother to let him, our parents, and her mother know. We'd take a doctor with us, and her mother would also have some security. Dad and Bennett could handle the business for a few months.
It's been almost one week since the whole ordeal. I haven't left her side for more than two minutes. My parents, Tatiana and Mel, have been visiting once a day. I haven't spoken to her about anything, and I'm not going to force her. One night, she was having a nightmare. I woke her up gently, or thought I did, but when I touched her, she opened her eyes and started screaming.
She pulled away from me, and I got up and looked at her. I had to calm her down and let her know it was me. She went to the bathroom and started showering. I realized at that moment that she needed to see a therapist.